Riding a wave of prolific offense, the Houston High School softball team is producing lots of runs and winning on a regular basis.
The Lady Tigers pounded Salem, 20-1, in a South Central Association conference matchup last Thursday at Carter Field in Houston, dispatched Summersville 16-6 in a nonconference road game last Friday and won 12-2 in an SCA contest Monday at Mountain Grove.
In addition to outscoring the opposition 48-9 during the 3-game stretch, Houston collected a whopping 42 hits. The results left the squad a 4-game winning streak, a 7-1 overall record and a 2-0 mark in SCA play.
“I think the biggest thing is we have some girls gaining confidence,” said head coach Jim Moore. “We’ve got some players who are starting to believe, and they’re seeing the ball well right now. Hopefully that continues.”
Against Salem, the Lady Tigers scored 8 runs in the bottom of the first inning of the run-rule shortened 2 ½-inning game, and then added 12 more in the second frame. Houston had 13 hits in the game – with 10 different players getting at least 1 – and took advantage of 7 walks and 7 errors committed by Salem fielders.
Three Lady Tigers had multi-hit outings, as junior shortstop Sophia Crites went 2-for-3 at the plate with 4 RBIs and 2 runs scored, junior third baseman Makinley Aaron went 2-for-3 with a double, 4 RBIs and a run, and junior left fielder Katy Scheets went 2-for-2 with an RBI and 2 runs.
Sophomore Lilly Kincaid got on base 4 times in the game, going 1-for-1 with 3 walks, 2 RBIs and 2 runs, while sophomore Katy Evans got aboard 3 times, going 1-for-1 with 2 walks, a double and 3 runs scored.
Kincaid was in the pitcher’s circle for Houston and allowed 2 hits and no earned runs, while striking out 2 and not issuing a walk.
COMEBACK COMPLETE
At Summersville, the Lady Tigers fell behind 3-2 after 1 inning and trailed 6-3 at the end of the fourth frame.
But Houston then scored 13 unanswered runs to post the lopsided victory.
After Aaron started in the pitcher’s circle and worked into the bottom of the fourth inning, Pritchett came in with nobody out and runners on first-and-third and the host Lady Wildcats on top 5-3. Summersville got 1 more run on an error, but Pritchett struck out 3 of the 4 batters she faced to put an end to the threat.
The Lady Tigers then took the lead for good in the top of the fifth inning with a 6-run rally highlighted by an RBI double by Evans and a 2-run triple by Crites.
Houston poured on the offense from there, adding another 3 runs in the sixth inning and 4 more in the seventh.
The Lady Tigers collected 16 hits in the game, including 7 doubles. The team’s first three batters – Cavaness, Kincaid and Aaron – all smacked 3 hits and scored twice, while Evans went 2-for-3 at the plate with 2 doubles, 2 walks 2 RBIs and 2 runs. Crites finished with 2 hits and drove in 4 runs, while Pritchett drove in 3 and allowed only 2 hits in 4 full innings in the pitcher’s circle while fanning 9 and walking only 1.
“We had to overcome a little adversity,” Moore said. “Things weren’t clicking real well for us early in the game, but we just stayed after it and kept putting pressure on the defense, and we finally broke through.
“It was good to see the girls not give up on it and trust their teammates and continue to believe we were going to win. And we got it done.”
LATE OUTBURST INVOKES RUN-RULE
In the 5-inning, run-rule shortened contest at Mountain Grove, the Lady Tigers took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning on consecutive singles by Cavaness, Kincaid and Aaron and a sacrifice fly by Pritchett.
The host Lady Panthers evened the score with a run in the second inning and another in the third.
Houston then went on top 3-2 in the top of the fourth frame on an RBI double by Aaron before exploding for 9 runs in the top of the fifth.
The decisive outburst featured a double, 5 singles, 3 walks, a hit batter and a run on a dropped third strike.
The Lady Tigers compiled 13 hits in the contest, with 8 players getting at least 1 and 4 players having multi-hit outings.
Aaron went 3-for-4 with 3 RBIs and a run scored, while Westbrook went 2-for-2 with 2 RBIs and 2 runs, Kincaid went 2-for4 with an RBI and 2 runs and Cavaness went 2-for-4 and scored twice.
Eight different Lady Tigers stole bases in the game.
Kincaid did the pitching for Houston and worked all 5 innings, allowing only 2 hits and 1 earned run while striking out 3 and walking 4.
Moore said the availability and use of indoor space at the Piney River Sports Complex has made a positive impact on the rise of the Lady Tigers’ offense.
“Our hitting facility is paying off,” he said. “We get a lot more swings in down there, and that has played a big role. But I think confidence is the big thing.”
While the Lady Tigers’ bats have been on fire of late, the pitching has been solid – with several contributors.
“It’s nice to have a little bit of depth at pitching,” Moore said. “We kind of have a rotation going, and that gives us a bit of an advantage. Not many teams at the high school level are able to do that, and it’s been working out well for us so far.
“And once again, there’s some confidence growing in that area, too.”
The Lady Tigers travel to Thayer for a key SCA contest on Thursday (April 4).
“I think the girls are feeling pretty good about themselves,” Moore said, “and they should be. I’m proud of where we’re at right now, but we still have a long way to go. We want to be playing our best at the end of the season, and we’re going to be.
“What’s exciting to me is I know how we’re playing right now, but I also know where we can go. We have a plan and we have a process, and we’re going to get there.”